A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his anger at ‘self-proclaimed gau rakshaks’, he once again called for stringent action against fake cow protectors and said that some people want 'tanaav' (tension) in the society in the name of 'cow protection'.
Speaking at the inauguration function of Bhagirath scheme in Telangana on Sunday, Prime Minister urged people to beware of 'fake' cow vigilantes and asked state governments to severely punish them.
"I request the state governments to make a list of such fake vigilantes and take stringent action against them. These people do not care about protection of cows. They just want to create tension in society in the name of cow protection," PM Modi said.
Terming cattle as country's wealth, he said a handful of people were trying to create tension in the society in the name of cow protection.
"I would like to tell all countrymen that they beware of these fake cow protectors," Modi said.
"These handful of people must not be allowed to destroy your good work for their vested interest," he said, while addressing a public meeting on his first visit to Telangana after assuming office.
Modi said there is a need to "expose" these people so they do not succeed in their nefarious designs.
Urging the 'true cow protectors' to identify people with vested interests, Prime Minister said that a handful of fake cow protectors are giving a bad name to the entire community of people who truly care and worship cows.
The PM said he salute real "gau rakshaks" and "gau sevaks" and appealed to them to come forward to expose fake "gau rakshaks".
India is a land of diversity, he said, adding "protecting our country's unity and integrity is our primary responsibility. To fulfil it all countrymen should protect and serve cows (gau raksha and gau seva karein). Such service enhances national wealth.... it does not create problem for the nation".
"But fake (cow protectors) destroy society and country. We need to beware of these people. There is a need to punish these people. Then alone can we take the nation to great heights," the Prime Minister said after inaugurating a host of development projects.
Yesterday, at a Town Hall-style address to mark the second anniversary of his government's MyGov initiative, the PM had rebuked the cow vigilantes and said that most of them were anti-social" elements who are running "shops" in the name of cow protection which makes him "angry".
He asked state governments to prepare "dossiers" on the so-called cow protectors as 80 per cent of them do illegal activities at night and become cow protectors in the day, asserting that running such help groups does not mean harassing others.
His comments come at a time when his government and BJP are facing flak over incidents of violence against Dalits and Muslims by cow vigilantes in various states including Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
Last month, in his home state of Gujarat, four dalits were publicly thrashed by cow vigilantes for skinning a dead cow. Subsequently, Dalits in the state have united and protesting all over the state against the ‘oppression’ by upper caste Hindus.
Meanwhile, the Opposition has termed Modi's statement against cow vigilantes as "absolutely humbug", alleging that his ideological co-travellers were perpetrating "terror" in the name of cow protection.
Congress leader Manish Tewari questioned Modi's "silence" on the Dadri lynching incident last year and alleged that the PM was selective in his outreach.
"..why does he not prevail upon RSS to disband the VHP, why does he not take action against the office bearers of Bajrang Dal?
Echoing similar sentiments, JD(U) leader Pavan Verma said had the PM given a stern message earlier, the "menace" of gau rakshaks could have been prevented.
